Sōjōbō Tengu

The tengu are mountain dwelling demons, part bird, part human. They appear in Japanese folk art and folk stories from earliest times until the present day. The tengu were said to be gifted with supernatural powers: shape shifting, telepathy and telekinesis. The strongest and most powerful of Tengu is the inspiration for our Yoshin Collection t-shirt : Sōjōbō Tengu.

It is said that Sōjōbō Tengu lives on Mount Kurama in the northern part of Kyōto. Also known as King of the Tengu, Sojobo Tengu (literally, High Priest) lives at the Sōjōgatani—”the valley of the high priest”—located deep within the interior of the mountain.
Tengu creatures are known for their mastery of martial arts. But legend says that it was Sōjōbō Tengu who taught all the secrets of Kenjutsu to a young samurai called Minamoto no Yoshitsune before taking up rebellion against his father’s old enemies. The tales of Minamoto no Yoshitsune were later immortalized in the Heike Monogatari folk tales.

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